Mainspring Energy Looking for Senior Manager of R&D Supply Chain at Menlo Park, CA Full Time

Driven by our vision of the affordable, reliable, net-zero carbon grid of the future, Mainspring has developed a new category of power generation — the linear generator — that delivers onsite, fuel-flexible power to help accelerate the transition to the future grid.

The unique combination of attributes offered by Mainspring’s linear generator enables applications on both the customer and utility sides of the meter for the $816B global electricity equipment market. We serve a wide range of Fortune 500 customers across markets and industries as well as top-tier utilities and other gridside providers.

We are looking to build relationships with people who share our values:

• Pragmatic Optimism. Building a new category of world-class power generation requires the optimism of ambition and creativity, balanced with practicality to solve problems efficiently. The challenges that arise are opportunities for growth.
• Excellence without Ego. We bring expertise and commitment to creating the best customer experience, from sales to deployment and service, just as we apply deep technical rigor to building and delivering world-class products. We strive for excellence and behave as leaders with the humility to acknowledge our challenges, both collectively and as individual contributors.
• Proactive Collaboration. The integration and cross-disciplinary nature of Mainspring’s business requires intentionally seeking out others who bring different skills, perspectives, and priorities. Our culture of inclusion and respect extends beyond our team to interactions with our partners and customers.

Mainspring is based in Menlo Park and is backed by top-tier venture and strategic investors such as Khosla Ventures, Bill Gates, American Electric Power, and Centrica Innovations. More information can be found at www.mainspringenergy.com.

Responsibilities

We are looking for a high energy individual and leader with exceptional attention to detail and with a high level of San Francisco Bay Area mechanical supplier knowledge. In this role, you will provide critical leadership and support to the Mainspring Energy CTO (Chief Technical Officer), R&D Engineering, and the Supply Chain teams to increase the velocity of R&D iteration of initial concepts on our next generation products. Come be a true contributor and make a difference.

• Lead R&D related Supply Chain efforts and initiatives for Mainspring; lead and develop a small R&D Supply Chain team, driving efficiency and performance improvement
• Develop relationships and maintain quick turn Bay Area mechanical suppliers; manage and improve the selection process for suppliers in an R & D environment
• Develop quick turn R&D supply chain processes/improvements that will conform to Mainspring Supply Chain practices and procedures when making decisions concerning negotiating, sourcing, and contracting for all goods and services purchased for R&D efforts
• Negotiate best alignment agreements with suppliers to drive “quick turn” responses. This may include capacity reservation and time + material relationships
• Communicate and negotiate with suppliers while ensuring specification and quality standards are met
• Identify and develop additional global, non-local, quick-turn mechanical suppliers
• Support requests for quick turn supply recovery of mechanical production Clear to Build parts and assemblies
• Support/develop process/procedures to ensure any suppliers supporting past the R&D phase meet Approved Vendor Listing (AVL) requirements
• Identify Key Process Indicator (KPI) metrics and targets that provide good R&D performance tracking and improvement
• Proactively resolve risk issues from long lead raw material, capacity, sole source, and other constraints that arise in the design phase within the Supply Chain
• Handle associated RFQs (Requests for Quote) against requirements
• Track and manage all associated R&D blanket agreements/PO/Contracts
• Drive schedule speed, recovery and corrective action as needed
• Collaborate with Finance and Legal to ensure any contracts align with Federal, State and Local laws; liaise between stakeholders such as the Supply Chain Team, Finance, Quality, Engineering, etc.
• Develop paths to keep R&D costs managed
• Identify Design for Manufacturability (DFM) improvements from initial R&D designs for long term cost down prior to move to production

Qualifications

• BS in Engineering with ~5 – 10 years’ experience managing local San Francisco Bay Area mechanical supplier relationships, parts manufacture, and agreements in an R&D environment; previous experience as a leader/manager
• 5 – 10 years’ experience buying at a senior level
• Proficiency to analyze quotes to determine the overall best offer for a product/service, including supplier past performance, capability, capacity, and financial stability
• Experience with service contracts, contractors, sub-contractors, etc.
• Process improvement mind-set and experience
• Possess a valid “Real ID” driver’s license, and clean driving record
• Excellent communication, negotiation, project management, time management, and problem-solving skills. Works well under pressure. Analytical and reaches conclusions based on data. Prefers to work in collaboration.
• Actual machining and mechanical manufacturing experience is a plus

The Bay Area salary for this role is $170k-$190k base + pre-IPO stock options + benefits. This position can be hybrid. The salary will be adjusted to reflect local market conditions based on employee location as well as the experience of the employee.

Does your experience not meet all of our posted requirements? Studies have shown that some people are less likely to apply to positions unless they meet every listed requirement. At Mainspring, we are committed to building a diverse, inclusive, flexible, and collaborative environment, so if you want to help us transition the world to clean and affordable electricity, and don’t meet all posted requirements for a particular role, we’d still love to hear from you. Mainspring can sometimes be flexible enough to shift responsibilities for the right person, or otherwise identify open or upcoming roles that may better fit your professional background.

In more traditional words, Mainspring Energy, Inc is an Equal Opportunity Employer. All qualified applicants will receive consideration for employment without regard to race, color, religion, sex, sexual orientation, gender identity, national origin, or protected veteran status and will not be discriminated against on the basis of disability.